Description

Thomas McGrath’s masterwork was the labour of over three decades, and is widely considered a seminal piece of twentieth century American literature.

Letter to an American Friend is a narrative epic in four parts, both deeply personal and grandly ambitious. The poem takes in a whole continent and its people and history. McGrath merges the mythological and material in compelling and elegant lines that run visionary while remaining tactile and grounded.

Publisher Review

A most accomplished and committed poet * New York Times Book Review * A tremendous odyssey of sense and spirit. * Library Journal * In American poetry he is as close to Whitman as anyone since Whitman himself * Terence Des Pres * One of the best American poets * New Republic * Has all the hallmarks of a masterpiece * Publishers Weekly * McGrath’s poetry will be remembered in one hundred years when many more fashionable voices have been forgotten * E.P. Thompson *